"Which of these summits are climbers asked NOT to fully ascend. That's is they have to stop x feet below the summit proper. Why?

Changabang, cho oyu, latok 1, nanga parbat or kangchenjunga?"

Kangchenjunga. Accordingly, George Band, Joe Brown and others whose names I've forgotten stopped a few feet short on the first ascent in 1955. The reason is the belief that gods live on that summit. I think.

Reinhold messner free climbed the first known 5.11a in europe. What route and where in europe? What year? Who was his partner? Hint: his partner would die on a 8000m peak years later and messner would catch a lot of shit for it. Truthfully my memory isn't perfectly clear on who his partner was, I "believe" I'm right. If I'm wrong. Oh well. Well get the truth then somehow.

In July 1968, Reinhold and Guenther Messner climbed the west face of the central pillar of Sass d'la Crusc. Messner's original line is rated UIAA VIII, which is usually translated into 5.11d. During the second ascent, Heinz Mariacher found a traverse that is in the 5.10 range and avoids the crux. No one else led the crux for at least fifteen years.

Guenther died in 1970. Reinhold also did the first ascent of another line on Sass d'la Crusc with Hans Frisch in 1969: The Great Wall. Reinhold devotes pages of "Seventh Grade" to both ascents. He regards the crux on the west pillar the hardest free-climbing move he ever made.

what was Black Diamonds name before it was Black Diamond? why the change in names/energy? what year(s) did this all happen?

It was 1989 I think. They were originally Chouinard Equipment. I'm pretty sure he (Yvon) was losing money and so filed for bankruptcy. Peter Metcalf (who was an employee) bought him out, moved the company to Salt Lake and renamed it "Black Diamond"

nice dude! if i recall correctly the reason Yvon was losing money was lawsuits. why the lawsuits? i recall the reason being there were no "warning: climbing is dangerous" and some people sued since, well, climbing turned out to be dangerous and the suers were injured or killed (and their families sued). anyone else hear this/confirm this?

I would like to learn something (or a lot) new today about climbing. Not just rock or ice but ALL climbing disciplines! My question to you all: what city was Mallory in when he uttered the famous phrase ”Because they are there”? Why was he there (what was he doing)?

So, I guess I'll tackle the very first question you asked: Unfortunately you (along with most people) have miss quoted him. The "original" quote ( although it TOO caused lots of controversy about whether or not he actually said it...or at least in that way....some say the reporter paraphrased his answer) was actually " Because IT's there". And it was in response to a New York Times reporter's question : " Why do you want to climb Mount Everest?" It was asked right before his final attempt on Everest.

nice dude! if i recall correctly the reason Yvon was losing money was lawsuits. why the lawsuits? i recall the reason being there were no "warning: climbing is dangerous" and some people sued since, well, climbing turned out to be dangerous and the suers were injured or killed (and their families sued). anyone else hear this/confirm this?

That's exactly right! There were several "product-liability" suits...plus he was also nota actually turning a profit.... I wonder why??? Certainly everyone loved/s his equipment...&.practically the only company doing it at the time...wonder why he wasnt making money off them? He definately learned SOMETHING and applied it to his next business venture :-) Definitely is doing better over at Patagonia hah

Hey Stoned Master, a got another Mallory question for ya: What mountain was Mallory''s friend referring to when he asked him " Have we vanquished an enemy?" And what was George's famous three word response to that question?? (My favorite climber quote by the way) For extra credit: what year was it?

alright Senda you asked a solid question. i did not know the answer. i pondered/deduced and couldnt get it.

i did learn the answer via the internet which was cool since I read alot I didnt know about Mallory like he put up a 5.9 around world war 1! thats gnarly. i didnt know he was free rock climbing like he was. also didnt know he didnt do that well in school (not surprising, look at his wanderlust/adventurist mind set)

the answer I found: Mont Maudit, 1916, and his reply was "none but ourselves".

that correct? i learned something new. thank you for posting such a solid question. if you think of more ask. if i dont know ill learn something new. its a win-win.

new question: whats the longest time spent (but still lived after the descent) above 26,240ft "the death zone" by a human? what mountain and when?

Paul Preuss was an Austrian climber back around 1900. He was strongly opposed to pitons and actually believed that even using a rope was somewhat dubious ethically. He did solo first ascents of a number of difficult routes.

There is a neat little story told about a time Royal Robbins and Warren Harding teamed up to climb at Tahquitz (THAT's big news enough...). Warren had lead a pitch and set up a belay. When Royal got there all but a "wafer" pin fell out and they were both hanging from it. I once sent Royal a query via email asking what route and belay had this story taken place. He laughed at the question and complimented me for asking such a good question...but couldn't remember. Sigh... I wonder if any of YOU know...

craghead, mark and crisco I will respond tomorrow. heading home and I have no internet at home. I did start to research Preusse(?) and he has become one of the most fascinating characters in climbing for sure. hes up there with fritz weissner, reinhold messner, jc lafaille, etc as a badass and a motivator for myself.

ill respond tomorrow.

if you dont know about this dude Preusse (i dont remember how his names spelled) LOOK HIM UP. well worth your time to read about him. amazing now, amazing then. by todays standards the dudes still a badass.

i looked up the mexican food question (see above) and couldnt find it. im going to guess: idaho? good one.

the royal robbins and harding tahquitz question is great. i "googled" the shit out of the two but all i ever read on any link was about their competition. great queation! i dont know. is "open book" the route? total guess.

paul preusses hardest solo ascents have been assessed in the 5.7/5.8 YDS range. i didnt find a clear statement but im going to throw out the north face of planspitze?

3 rules of mountaineering (good/fun one): its always farther than it looks, its always taller than it looks and its always harder than it looks.

john muir refers to "...the man whom lofty mountain tops are within reach..." as "doubly happy"

I used to have a web page with a dozen or so climbing trivia quizes, several hundred questions in all. I shut it down in 2005 because it was a headache to maintain. Here is an amusing question from the US Rock Climbing quiz: Which of the following is a real person, the son of a famous climber? Royal Croft, Reinhold Twight, Layton Bridwell or Yvon Kauk